senegal



4 sheets-shee't'l.

(Model.)

L. M. SENEGAL. `NAIL PLATE FEEDER.

.Patented.,Aug..l,..l8'8-2.

No. A26-1,878.

N, PETERS. Pmnwmmgnpher. wnhihgm. D. t;

(Model.) 4 Sheets-Sheet 2.

L. M. SENEGAL NAIL PLATE FEEDER.

(Model.) 4 sheets-sheen s L. M. SENEGAL. NAIL PLATE FEEDER.

Patented Aug. 1', 18:82.

d@ imm@ (Model.) A 4Sheets-Sheet 4.

L. M. SNGAL.

NAIL PLATE FEEDER.

No. 261,878 Patented Aug. l, 1882.

1` UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

LoUIS M. SENEGAL, oF S'r. HENRI, AssIGNoE on ONE-HALE To .IAMES Dn GASPE STUART, oF MONTREAL, QUEBEC, oANADA.

NAIL-PLATE FEEDER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 261,878, dated August 1, 1882. Application ined June 23, 1881. (Model.)

To all whom it may concern.:

Be it known that I, LOUIS MISAEL SENEGAL, of the town of St. Henri, in the district of Montreal and Province of Quebec, Canada, have invented a certain new and useful Automatic l FeedingApparatusfor Nail-Guttin g Machines; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the same. My invention, which can be aflXed to any nail-machine ofthe ordinaryconstruction without anynecessity for rearrangement of its parts, receives motion directly from it, feeds the nailplate to the cutting mechanism in exactly the same way as is done by the workman, the-turning over being performed automatically, and the exact amount to be fed to the cutters properly gaged. My invention is also arranged to feed hot plate when this is to be cutv up into nails, and may be thus briefly described: Upon the roller or cam-shaft of a nail-machine is placed a cam givin g rocking motion independently to two levers pivoted in a fork carried in a pro-l jection from the frame. To the ends of these g 5 levers are yattached rods operatinghorzontallyplaced levers pivoted on the same center under the frame, to their outer ends being secured adjustably rod-s ending in wire ropes", each of which is separately attached toLa grooved pulley mounted rigidly on a transverse horizontal shaft. This transverse shaft, which through 'the mechanism above described receivesa rock- Aing motion, is carried in front of the machine in suitable bearings, so arranged that its position may be shifted at will either vertically or laterally, backward or forward. Upon this shaft are secured two pulleys, by the rotation of which a rocking motion is imparted through wire ropes to a cylinder carried in bearings resting on the shaft. This cylinder carries the nail-plate and feeds it to the machine, oering in theusual way each face of the plate alternately to the cutters. It is made in two parts, and the mechanism for rotating it so arranged that the front part-viz., the one that holds the plate-shall perform but half a turn while the rear portion does two-thirds of a revolution, the stoppage of the front part giving time for the cutters to separate the nail from 5o the plate, the eXtra independent rotation of 'the `rear part of the cylinder completing the operation of the mechanism for automatically feeding the nail-plate forward. A spring engaging with stops on thc front part ofthe cylinder and detached therefrom by a suitable de- 5 5 tent arranged thereon serves to secure the half-turn of the front cylinder in either direction withoutintert'ering with the revolution of the rear part, or with the action of the cam operating the nippers. The 'conductors or nose- 6o pieces at the feeding end of the cylinder are arranged so as to be shifted, their position being altered by set-screws or equivalent means, and so constructedas to yield to slight inequalities of the plate. A system of levers, in connection with the supports of the cylinder, and operated by a cam, serves to tilt the cylinder sufficiently to enable the nose-pieces to clear the nail-cutting knife as the cylinder is turned over. The several devices just men'- 7o tioned, and going to make upthe complete mechanism, are all provided with means whereby their respective actions may be modified or their relative positions slightly varied.

, For full comprehension of my invention ref- 7 5 erenee must be had to the annexed drawings,

in which Figure 1 is a plan view of the apparatus, Fig. 2 a side view, Fig. 3 a front view, and Fig. 4 a rear view, of the same. Fig.

5 is au enlarged plan of the nippers; Figs. 6 8o and 7, respectively, side and front views of tilting mechanism for cylinder; Figs. 8 and 9, views ot' cam, Figs. l0 and l1, details of cylinder, and Fig. 12 a detail of the nose-pieces.

Similar letters ot' reference indica-te like 85 parts.

A is the frame of the nail-machine, of any usual type, size, and strength, B being the cam-shaft of same, carried in suitable bearings in the frame, rotated in any usual way, and giv- 9o ing motion to my apparatus. Upon this shaft B is mounted the triple cam O, giving the heads D Dl of the pivoted levers D not only an independent reciprocating motion longitudinally, butalso a simultaneous reciprocating lateral movement, these levers being pivoted in a fork, E, carried loosely on an arm, E', projecting from the frame.

F F are levers pivoted where shown, at f in Fig. l, under the frame, receiving respectively Ioo reciprocal motion from the levers D D, being connectedtherewith by rods F' F', so adjusted as to accommodate themselves to any angle, preferably resting in eyes formed at the ends of the respective levers, and secured in place by springs F2 F2 coiled round same. .To the ends of these levers F F are secured rods G G, having fastened to their ends wire or other suitable ropes or chains, G' G', the other ends of which are firmly attached each in the groove of a pulley, H', mounted on ashaft, H, set transversely in front of the nail-ma` chine.

g g are jam-nuts, or nuts and washers, on the screwed ends of G G to tighten up any slackness of the wire. This shaft H is carried in arms I, tnrnedup, slotted, and secured to the frame by washers and screws, or in any other suitable way, so as to be adjustable vertically. In bent projections I' l', secured. to

the arms I I, work screws it, pressing against the ends of the shaft and adjusting its position laterally, thus varying the size of the tread ot' the nail.

t" i' are screws for adjusting the shaft H, and by their action moving the shaft H farther from or nearer to the front of the machine, or varying the angle of the axis 0f the shaft to the machine.

It will of course be understood from the foregoing that the motion of the levers D I), acting through rods F' F', levers F F, and rods G G, connected with pulley H', imparts to this shaft H and all mounted on it a rocking move-l ment.

H2 H2 are pulleys suitably keyed on the shaft H and moving simultaneously with the pulley H'. To these pulleys HY'H2 are secured wire or other ropes or chains, h 7L, the'other ends of which are secured to pulleys 7c 7c, formed on the cylinder, to be presently described, and giving to the cylinder the alternate rotation or rocking motion of the transverse shaft H. This cylinder is formed of two parts, K K', the former smaller than and working somewhat inside the other, in the interior of which are formed receptacles for the conductors or nose-pieces L L. These are pivoted at L3 to the sides of the cylinder, at a small distance from their rear ends, to which are connected set-screws l l, and by the operation of these the distance apart of the front ends or gripping portion is adjusted. These nose-pieces are made wholly or partially of spring-steel, so that the construction just described will allow any inequalities in the plate to pass through without difficulty, a yielding resistance only being presented. These nose-pieces L L bring the nail-plate to be cut down onto the bed-plate A' of the nail-machinean d hold it there during the operation. Upon the bed-plate A' is secured a stop, L', which bears against the side of one of these nose-pieces L when the nail is to be cut and the parts in the position shown in Fig. l, and is cleared by them while the cylinderis being tilted, as shown in Fig. 2. This stop L' is so placed or adjusted on the bed-plate A' that when the nose-piece is just in contact with it the nail-plate is presented to the cutter in exactly the proper position to form the head ofthe nail. Should these nose-pieces, from their springy nature, be expanded by inequalities in the plate,such expansion in the side next the stop will be prevented by it, the plate bekept on that side in its proper position, and the nail, although a triie longer, willhaveaperfect head. Again, since this stop presses against the holders and not against the plate, it cannot, when the plate is nearly fed through, exercise leverage upon it and press it sidewise before it reaches the cutters, which are thus enabled to cut just as well at the end as at the beginning ot' a piece and to use it up, excepting a very small quantity of scrap.

The cylinder K K' is carried in bands M M, supported on either side by forks M' M', rigidly secured to standards M2., carried up from sleeves on the spindle H.

To secure the rotation of the front cylinder, K', simultaneously with K, operated directly by the wire ropes h h, but performing a less revolution-i. e., one-half instead of twothirds-I secure to the side of K aflat spring,

N, passing through a notch on the front pulley, c, and having a projection on the inner face of its free end. This, when the cylinder K has performed a small portion of its revolution, falls into a notch, N', formed in the cylinder K', and carries this cylinder around until it has completed the full half-circle, and the nose-pieces are again in their normal position. At this point a stop, N2, formed on K'by the side of the notch N', comes against a detent, N3, secured to the band M or frame N3, previously disengaging the spring N, which, with the cylinder K, completes the two-thirds revolution, and as the reverse turn begins the action just described is repeated. N, passing on to the semicircular piece N3, presses it in against the cylinder K', thus keeping the stop N2 in contact with N3 and assuring the stoppage of the revolution of said cylinder.

The mechanism just described is shown most fully in Figs. 10 and 11, the first giving the position of the severalparts when the cylinders K K' are revolving simultaneously, and

Ioo

IOS

The spring IIO the second their 'position when the cylinder K' has been stopped and K is still revolving.

The devices for tilting the cylinder-carriage M' M' will now. be described.

O is an arm secured at one end by a universal joint to the frame, and having attached to the other adjustably, by a set-screw or in any other suitable way, a ring, O', from which projects a pin dropping into aring, P', carried loosely in the forked end of a lever, P, secured, as will be described, to one o f the standards M2. This lever l? is at its lower end bent,and against this works acam, Q, mounted rigidly on the shaft H and .operating twice in the course of its revolution. Between'P and M2 is interposed a curved lever, R, with a projection formed on its side and entering into a slot formed in M2, so as to insure their simultane- ISO Y desired, but is movable and acted upon by the cam Q at its lower end. As this cam Q recedes in its revolution from its farthest point of contact with the bent lever P this lever, coming nearer to the center of the shaft H,allows the spring S to expand, and this,

pressing against the forked end R' of the lever R, imparts motion to the standard M2 and the cylinder-carriage, and thus tilts the cylinder. The operation of this apparatus is so timed that the tilting backward of thecylindcr and consequent elevation of its frontend shall be greatest at the time when the nose-pieces are in a vertical position to each other, and that it will gradually move forward as these turn to bring their flat sides in contact with the bed-plate.

v It will be obvious that the degree of tilting of the cylinder can be adjusted by raising or lowering the position of the pivot-pointin of the levers P and R with the standard M2.

Should the shaft H, by means of the screws i' i', before mentioned, be moved nearer the machine, it will be necessary to adjust the position ofthe ring O' and its pin on the arm O with relation to the lever P. This regulates the normal position of the cylinder, and therefore the nose-pieces, with relation to the bedplate of the nail-machine, and the position of the pivot fr, as just mentioned, determines the degree of tilting. Again, by lifting the arm O out of the ring P' and swinging it out sidewise therwhole of the nail-i'eedin g apparatus is partially detached, the nail-machine being then entirely free for access by the workman, and thus the knives may be sharpened or adjusted without detachin g any part of the nailfeeding apparatus, which may be instantaneously put in gear with the naiLmachine by simply restoring the pin of O' to its position in the ring P'.

The mechanism for feeding the nail-plate is as follows: From the under side of the bands M M projects backward a longitudinal rib, T, carrying in small standards t t, secured thereto, a small rod, U, on the endof which is the pivotpoint U' of the nipping-levers V V', having mounted on their outer ends the nippersW W', lined preferably with cushions ot' rubber and iron packing placed vertically and alternately. The Ainner ends of these nipping-levers are carried in curved standards 'l" T2, the former hold-` ing the moving leverVin a notch and the latter the fixed lever V' in an eye. In the end of the lever V is :fixed a pin, t, which, as the cylinder K rotates, engages with a cam,X, formed thereon, simultaneously drawing forward the Dipper-rod and shuttingthe nippers W W'. A coiled spring, a, on the rod U returns the nipping-levers to their normal position,the degree ot' its tension being adjusted by a loose ring secured on U by a set-screw, and the distance which these levers retire when released from the cam, and consequently the width of the nail to be cut, being regulated by the screw Y, working against the pivot-point U'.

Having thus described my invention, I may say that the several devices described are arranged and timed to co-operate with each other and the nail-cutting machine, and that what I claim is as follows:

l.. In combination with the levers D, the triplecam operating by its rotation to give to said levers lateral motion.

2. The barrel or cylinder holding the nailplate, formed in two parts, and rotated in different proportions of a complete revolution, as and for the purposes set forth.

3. The combination, with the cylinder K, of spring N, engaging with recess in cylinder K', and rotating it for the desired distance, and projection N2, acting against stop N3 to arrest revolution of K', all substantially as herein described.

4. The combination, with cylinder rotated alternately in opposite directions and holding the nail-plate, of nipping-levers which, by means of a projection on the end of one engaging with a cam` on the rim of the cylinder, simultaneously shut the nippers and feed the nail-plate forward, all substantially as herein set forth.

5. The combination ofthe rod U, carried in projection from tilting frame, the nipping-levers V V' pushing same forward, the spring ICO u returning same to normal position, and the screw Y, carried independently in projection T, all constructed and operating substantially as herein set forth, and for the purposes described. j

6. In a nail-plate feeder, the combination, with the cylinder carrying the nail-plate, of the nose-pieces L, pivoted near their rear ends to the said cylinder', and the set-screws ,which pass through the rear ends of the said nosepieces to adjust their forward ends to nailplates ot' different widths.

7. The combination, with one of the standards carrying the cylinder, of the levers R and P, operated by cam Q on shaft H, and arm O, connected adj ustably with lever P, and having thereon spring S, operating against lever R, all constructed, arranged, and operating substantially as described, and for the purposes set forth. j

8. The combination of the arm O, pivoted to the nail-cuttiug machine, lever Pfand ring O', with projection on saine dropping into ring P', carried on end of said lever, all substantially as described, and working together to put nail-plate feeder in gearfor action.

LOUIS MISAEL SENEGAL.

Witnesses:

J AMES STUART, Fans. HY. REYNOLDS. 

